A business deals that threatened to break up a government

When Denmark gave the global financial giant
Goldman Sachs the go-ahead on Thursday to buy a stake in its state
utility, the move was not exactly followed by a celebratory signing
ceremony.

So divided was the Socialist People’s Party
that it withdrew its ministers from the country’s governing coalition.
Some party members said the deal ceded too much power to Goldman.
Annette Vilhelmsen, the party’s leader [pictured below], who supported the deal, stepped
down from her leadership role since she could not reach agreement within
her party.

The party’s withdrawal from the coalition
left the government of Helle Thorning-Schmidt [she of the Cameron/Obama selfie at the Nelson Mandela funeral, pictured above], the prime minister, with a
tenuous grip on power.

That so many Danes have been aghast at the
idea of giving Goldman Sachs a prominent role in the country’s energy
future reflects how far the damage to the investment bank’s reputation
has spread since the financial crisis.

However much the financial world might envy
Goldman’s trading prowess, many Danes see Goldman as an emblem of an
industry that helped cause the crisis and then profited handsomely even
as much of the Continent still struggles to recover.

… The deal was approved … by a
parliamentary committee. The departure of the Socialists left the two
remaining parties in a precarious position.

… But Prime Minister Thorning-Schmidt, who is
best known internationally for her recent “selfie” with President Obama
at the funeral of Nelson Mandela, said she would form a new government.

… Under the terms of the deal, Goldman would
invest about $1.45 billion for an 18 percent stake in Dong Energy, the
state utility, which has become a green energy exemplar in its push for
electricity from wind turbines. Though the deal buys far from a
controlling share, the minority stake would come with special
privileges.